Pepper hybrid SV4844PB

ABSTRACT

The invention provides seed and plants of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and the parent lines thereof. The invention thus relates to the plants, seeds and tissue cultures of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and the parent lines thereof, and to methods for producing a pepper plant produced by crossing such plants with themselves or with another pepper plant, such as a plant of another genotype. The invention further relates to seeds and plants produced by such crossing. The invention further relates to parts of such plants, including the fruit and gametes of such plants.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of plant breeding and, morespecifically, to the development of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and theinbred pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The goal of vegetable breeding is to combine various desirable traits ina single variety/hybrid. Such desirable traits may include any traitdeemed beneficial by a grower and/or consumer, including greater yield,resistance to insects or disease, tolerance to environmental stress, andnutritional value.

Breeding techniques take advantage of a plant's method of pollination.There are two general methods of pollination: a plant self-pollinates ifpollen from one flower is transferred to the same or another flower ofthe same plant or plant variety. A plant cross-pollinates if pollencomes to it from a flower of a different plant variety.

Plants that have been self-pollinated and selected for type over manygenerations become homozygous at almost all gene loci and produce auniform population of true breeding progeny, a homozygous plant. A crossbetween two such homozygous plants of different genotypes produces auniform population of hybrid plants that are heterozygous for many geneloci. Conversely, a cross of two plants each heterozygous at a number ofloci produces a population of hybrid plants that differ genetically andare not uniform. The resulting non-uniformity makes performanceunpredictable.

The development of uniform varieties requires the development ofhomozygous inbred plants, the crossing of these inbred plants, and theevaluation of the crosses. Pedigree breeding and recurrent selection areexamples of breeding methods that have been used to develop inbredplants from breeding populations. Those breeding methods combine thegenetic backgrounds from two or more plants or various other broad-basedsources into breeding pools from which new lines and hybrids derivedtherefrom are developed by selfing and selection of desired phenotypes.The new lines and hybrids are evaluated to determine which of those havecommercial potential.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the present invention provides a pepper plant of thehybrid designated SV4844PB, the pepper line SBR-99-1326 or pepper lineSBR-E711417. Also provided are pepper plants having all thephysiological and morphological characteristics of such a plant. Partsof these pepper plants are also provided, for example, including pollen,an ovule, scion, a rootstock, a fruit, and a cell of the plant.

In another aspect of the invention, a plant of pepper hybrid SV4844PBand/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 comprising an addedheritable trait is provided. The heritable trait may comprise a geneticlocus that is, for example, a dominant or recessive allele. In oneembodiment of the invention, a plant of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and/orpepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 is defined as comprising asingle locus conversion. In specific embodiments of the invention, anadded genetic locus confers one or more traits such as, for example,herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, disease resistance, and modifiedcarbohydrate metabolism. In further embodiments, the trait may beconferred by a naturally occurring gene introduced into the genome of aline by backcrossing, a natural or induced mutation, or a transgeneintroduced through genetic transformation techniques into the plant or aprogenitor of any previous generation thereof. When introduced throughtransformation, a genetic locus may comprise one or more genesintegrated at a single chromosomal location.

The invention also concerns the seed of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and/orpepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417. The pepper seed of theinvention may be provided as an essentially homogeneous population ofpepper seed of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326and SBR-E711417. Essentially homogeneous populations of seed aregenerally free from substantial numbers of other seed. Therefore, seedof hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 maybe defined as forming at least about 97% of the total seed, including atleast about 98%, 99% or more of the seed. The seed population may beseparately grown to provide an essentially homogeneous population ofpepper plants designated SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 andSBR-E711417.

In yet another aspect of the invention, a tissue culture of regenerablecells of a pepper plant of hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper linesSBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 is provided. The tissue culture willpreferably be capable of regenerating pepper plants capable ofexpressing all of the physiological and morphological characteristics ofthe starting plant, and of regenerating plants having substantially thesame genotype as the starting plant. Examples of some of thephysiological and morphological characteristics of the hybrid SV4844PBand/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 include those traits setforth in the tables herein. The regenerable cells in such tissuecultures may be derived, for example, from embryos, meristems,cotyledons, pollen, leaves, anthers, roots, root tips, pistils, flowers,seed and stalks. Still further, the present invention provides pepperplants regenerated from a tissue culture of the invention, the plantshaving all the physiological and morphological characteristics of hybridSV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417.

In still yet another aspect of the invention, processes are provided forproducing pepper seeds, plants and fruit, which processes generallycomprise crossing a first parent pepper plant with a second parentpepper plant, wherein at least one of the first or second parent pepperplants is a plant of pepper line SBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417.These processes may be further exemplified as processes for preparinghybrid pepper seed or plants, wherein a first pepper plant is crossedwith a second pepper plant of a different, distinct genotype to providea hybrid that has, as one of its parents, a plant of pepper lineSBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417. In these processes, crossingwill result in the production of seed. The seed production occursregardless of whether the seed is collected or not.

In one embodiment of the invention, the first step in “crossing”comprises planting seeds of a first and second parent pepper plant,often in proximity so that pollination will occur for example, mediatedby insect vectors. Alternatively, pollen can be transferred manually.Where the plant is self-pollinated, pollination may occur without theneed for direct human intervention other than plant cultivation.

A second step may comprise cultivating or growing the seeds of first andsecond parent pepper plants into plants that bear flowers. A third stepmay comprise preventing self-pollination of the plants, such as byemasculating the flowers (i.e., killing or removing the pollen).

A fourth step for a hybrid cross may comprise cross-pollination betweenthe first and second parent pepper plants. Yet another step comprisesharvesting the seeds from at least one of the parent pepper plants. Theharvested seed can be grown to produce a pepper plant or hybrid pepperplant.

The present invention also provides the pepper seeds and plants producedby a process that comprises crossing a first parent pepper plant with asecond parent pepper plant, wherein at least one of the first or secondparent pepper plants is a plant of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepperlines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417. In one embodiment of the invention,pepper seed and plants produced by the process are first generation (F₁)hybrid pepper seed and plants produced by crossing a plant in accordancewith the invention with another, distinct plant. The present inventionfurther contemplates plant parts of such an F₁ hybrid pepper plant, andmethods of use thereof. Therefore, certain exemplary embodiments of theinvention provide an F₁ hybrid pepper plant and seed thereof.

In still yet another aspect, the present invention provides a method ofproducing a plant derived from hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper linesSBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417, the method comprising the steps of: (a)preparing a progeny plant derived from hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepperlines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417, wherein said preparing comprisescrossing a plant of the hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326and SBR-E711417 with a second plant; and (b) crossing the progeny plantwith itself or a second plant to produce a seed of a progeny plant of asubsequent generation. In further embodiments, the method mayadditionally comprise: (c) growing a progeny plant of a subsequentgeneration from said seed of a progeny plant of a subsequent generationand crossing the progeny plant of a subsequent generation with itself ora second plant; and repeating the steps for an additional 3-10generations to produce a plant derived from hybrid SV4844PB and/orpepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417. The plant derived from hybridSV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 may be aninbred line, and the aforementioned repeated crossing steps may bedefined as comprising sufficient inbreeding to produce the inbred line.In the method, it may be desirable to select particular plants resultingfrom step (c) for continued crossing according to steps (b) and (c). Byselecting plants having one or more desirable traits, a plant derivedfrom hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 isobtained which possesses some of the desirable traits of the line/hybridas well as potentially other selected traits.

In certain embodiments, the present invention provides a method ofproducing food or feed comprising: (a) obtaining a plant of pepperhybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417, whereinthe plant has been cultivated to maturity, and (b) collecting at leastone pepper from the plant.

In still yet another aspect of the invention, the genetic complement ofpepper hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417is provided. The phrase “genetic complement” is used to refer to theaggregate of nucleotide sequences, the expression of which sequencesdefines the phenotype of, in the present case, a pepper plant, or a cellor tissue of that plant. A genetic complement thus represents thegenetic makeup of a cell, tissue or plant, and a hybrid geneticcomplement represents the genetic make up of a hybrid cell, tissue orplant. The invention thus provides pepper plant cells that have agenetic complement in accordance with the pepper plant cells disclosedherein, and seeds and plants containing such cells.

Plant genetic complements may be assessed by genetic marker profiles,and by the expression of phenotypic traits that are characteristic ofthe expression of the genetic complement, e.g., isozyme typing profiles.It is understood that hybrid SV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326and SBR-E711417 could be identified by any of the many well knowntechniques such as, for example, Simple Sequence Length Polymorphisms(SSLPs) (Williams et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 1 8:6531-6535, 1990),Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), DNA AmplificationFingerprinting (DAF), Sequence Characterized Amplified Regions (SCARs),Arbitrary Primed Polymerase Chain Reaction (AP-PCR), Amplified FragmentLength Polymorphisms (AFLPs) (EP 534 858, specifically incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety), and Single NucleotidePolymorphisms (SNPs) (Wang et al., Science, 280:1077-1082, 1998).

In still yet another aspect, the present invention provides hybridgenetic complements, as represented by pepper plant cells, tissues,plants, and seeds, formed by the combination of a haploid geneticcomplement of a pepper plant of the invention with a haploid geneticcomplement of a second pepper plant, preferably, another, distinctpepper plant. In another aspect, the present invention provides a pepperplant regenerated from a tissue culture that comprises a hybrid geneticcomplement of this invention.

Any embodiment discussed herein with respect to one aspect of theinvention applies to other aspects of the invention as well, unlessspecifically noted.

The term “about” is used to indicate that a value includes the standarddeviation of the mean for the device or method being employed todetermine the value. The use of the term “or” in the claims is used tomean “and/or” unless explicitly indicated to refer to alternatives onlyor the alternatives are mutually exclusive. When used in conjunctionwith the word “comprising” or other open language in the claims, thewords “a” and “an” denote “one or more,” unless specifically notedotherwise. The terms “comprise,” “have” and “include” are open-endedlinking verbs. Any forms or tenses of one or more of these verbs, suchas “comprises,” “comprising,” “has,” “having,” “includes” and“including,” are also open-ended. For example, any method that“comprises,” “has” or “includes” one or more steps is not limited topossessing only those one or more steps and also covers other unlistedsteps. Similarly, any plant that “comprises,” “has” or “includes” one ormore traits is not limited to possessing only those one or more traitsand covers other unlisted traits.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following detailed description. It should beunderstood, however, that the detailed description and any specificexamples provided, while indicating specific embodiments of theinvention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changesand modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from this detaileddescription.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides methods and compositions relating to plants,seeds and derivatives of pepper hybrid SV4844PB, pepper line SBR-99-1326and pepper line SBR-E711417.

Pepper hybrid SV4844PB develops a medium-sized plant with average leafcover. The anthocyaninless plant produces large, rather deep fruit(length:diameter ratio=1.08) of average quality. Hybrid SV4844PBdisplayed less fruit production per area (fruit weight per area; 89%)but larger fruit (mean fruit weight=109%) than commercial variety“9979325”. The firm fruit mature from a dark to medium-dark green to redbell pepper. The hybrid is resistant to bacterial leaf spot (BLS) races(0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10) caused by Xanthomonas campestrispv. vesicatoria (Xcv 0-10) and Tobamo virus pathotype P0 (Tm0) andintended for open field production. The main use of this hybrid would bein areas that could be affected by Xcv 0-10. Currently races 4 and 6 ofXcv severely limit production in certain areas of the South-East USA,particularly Georgia and Florida. Without resistance to Xcv 0-10 it maybe impossible to prevent heavy infection under environmental conditionsthat favor BLS. There are currently three commercially available hybridswith Xcv 0-10 resistance, “99422815”, “9954288” and “9979325”. The firsttwo hybrids, “9942815” and “9954288”, are best adapted to Georgia whileSV4844PB is best adapted to Florida.

A. ORIGIN AND BREEDING HISTORY OF PEPPER HYBRID SV4844PB

The parents of hybrid SV4844PB are SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417. Theseparents were created as follows:

Parent line SBR-99-1326, also known as “SBR 99-1326”, is a blocky sweetbell pepper inbred line developed by pedigree selection from the Seminishybrid SVR 09931012. The hybrid SVR 09931012 resulted from an initialcross between the Seminis breeding lines “SBR 99-1209” (U.S. P.V.P.Certificate No. 200700033) and “03LB 01196-03”. The line develops amedium-sized, anthocyaninless plant with good heat-setting abilitiesthat produces a heavy set of smooth, deep, that matures fruit from darkgreen to red. The line is resistant to Xanthomonas campestris pv.vesicatoria (Xcv; bs₅ gene) races 0 to 10 and Tobamovirus pathotype P0(Tm0; L₁ gene).

The female parent, SBR 99-1209, develops a medium-large plant andproduces blocky to deep blocky sweet pepper fruit. The firm fruit can beslightly tapered with shallow shoulders and blossom end and usuallypossess 3 or 4 locules. The fruit mature from a dark green to a brightred color and measure approximately 10 cm wide and 10 cm long.Anthocyanins are sometimes present on the fruit. The line is resistantto Xcv (Bs2 gene) races 0, 1, 2, 3, 7, and 8, Potato Y Virus pathotypeP0 (PVY0; pvr2-2 gene) and Tm0.

The male parent, 03LB 01196-03, develops a large plant that sets blockyto somewhat flat fruit that segregates for the anthocyaninless trait.The immature dark green fruit ripen to red. It also is resistant to Xcvraces 0 to 10 that was derived from the line 4413-23-1BK obtained from auniversity cooperator.

Neither parent was marketed directly as open pollinated lines. SBR99-1326 differs from SBR 99-1209 because SBR 99-1326 is anthocyaninless,and is resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10 but susceptible to PVY0, while SBR99-1209 is susceptible to Xcv races 4, 5, 6, 9, and 10, and is resistantto PVY0. SBR 99-1326 differs from 03LB 01196-03 because SBR 99-1326 isresistant to PVY0 and fixed for the anthocyaninless trait while 03LB01196-03 is susceptible to PVY0 and segregating for the anthocyaninlesstrait.

Parent line SBR-99-1326 was created as follows:

-   January Year 1 Planted parents SBR 99-1209 (2) and 03LB 01196-03 (5)    in the greenhouse. The initial cross was made resulting in the F1    hybrid SVR 09931012.-   January Year 2 Sowed F1 hybrid SVR 09931012 in the greenhouse and    transplanted seedlings into the field. The plants were allowed to    self-pollinate. Seeds from the selfed plants were massed.-   July Year 2 Sowed F2 inbred line in the field. The line produced    dark green, smooth, moderately firm and red fruit. Individual plants    resistant to Xcv Races 0 to 10 were selected and allowed to    self-pollinate. Seed was collected from individual plants.-   January Year 3 Planted F3 inbred line in the field. The line    produced firm red fruit. Individual plants resistant to Xcv races 0    to 10 were selected and allowed to self-pollinate. Seed was    collected from individual plants.-   July Year 3 Planted F4 inbred line in the field. Individual plants    resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10 were selected and allowed to    self-pollinate. Seed was collected from individual plants.-   January Year 4 Planted F5 inbred line in the field. Individual    plants resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10 were selected and allowed to    self-pollinate. Seed was collected from individual plants.-   July Year 4 Planted F6 inbred line in the field. Individual plants    resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10 were selected and allowed to    self-pollinate. Seed was collected from individual plants.-   January Year 5 Planted F7 inbred line in the field. The line    developed a medium-size, anthocyaninless plant with good    heat-setting abilities that produced a heavy set of smooth, deep,    dark green maturing to red fruit. The line was fixed for resistance    to Xcv races 0 to 10. The line was allowed to self-pollinate and the    resulting seed was bulked.-   July Year 5 The seed was tested and found to be resistant to Tm0 and    to Xcv races 0 to 10. The bulked seed was designated as line SBR    99-1326.

Selection criteria for the development of SBR 99-1326 includedresistance to Xcv races 0 to 10, resistance to Tm0, heavy fruit set,smooth and firm fruit, dark green immature fruit color, dark red maturefruit color, and adequate fruit set. Observations made during threegenerations of reproduction and seed increase during the years 6, 7, and8 indicate that SBR 99-1326 is uniform and stable within commerciallyacceptable limits. As is true with other sweet pepper inbred lines, asmall percentage of off-types can occur within commercially acceptablelimits for almost any characteristic during the course of repeatedmultiplication. However no variants were found during the nine field andsix green house trials in which SBR 99-1326 has been observed.

Parent line SBR-E711417 is a blocky sweet bell pepper inbred linedeveloped by pedigree selection from the Seminis hybrid SVR 09942895.The hybrid SVR 09942895 resulted from a cross between the Seminisbreeding lines “04LB 00867-02” and “SBR 99-1203”. The line develops ananthocyaninless medium-sized plant that displays a fair amount of leafcurl while producing an adequate set of large, deep, smooth fruit withpronounced shoulders. The fruit mature from dark green to red. The lineis resistant to Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria (Xcv; bs₅ gene)races 0 to 10, Potato Y Virus pathotype P0 (PVY0; pvr2-2 gene) andTobamovirus pathotype P0 (Tm0; L₁ gene).

The female parent, 04LB 00867-02, develops a medium-large,anthocyaninless plant. The plant produces a blocky to deep blocky sweetpepper. The firm fruit can be slightly tapered with shallow shoulder andblossom end, and measure approximately 10 cm wide and 10 cm long. Itmatures from dark green to a bright yellow and usually has 3 or 4locules. This inbred line exhibits resistance to Xcv races 0 to 10 thatwas derived from the line 4413-23-1BK obtained from a universitycooperator.

The male parent, SBR 99-1203, develops a medium-large, anthocyaninlessplant. The plant produces a blocky sweet pepper. The firm fruit can beslightly tapered with a shallow shoulder and blossom end, and measureapproximately 8 cm wide and 8 cm long. The fruit matures from dark greento a bright red and usually have 3 or 4 locules. The line expressesresistance to Tm0, Xcv races 0, 1, 2, 3, 7 and 8, and PVY0.

Neither parent was marketed directly as open pollinated lines.SBR-E711417 differs from 04LB 00867-02 because SBR-E711417 produces redfruit resistant to PVY0 and Tm0 while 04LB 00867-02 produces yellowfruit susceptible to PVY0 and Tm0. SBR-E711417 differs from SBR 99-1203because SBR-E711417 it is resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10 while SBR99-1203 is resistant to only Xcv races 0, 1, 2, 3, 7 and 8.

Parent line SBR-E711417 was created as follows:

-   July Year 2 Planted parents 04LB 00867-2 (2) and SBR 99-1203 (5) in    the greenhouse. Initial cross was made resulting in the F1 hybrid    SVR 09942895.-   January Year 3 Sowed F1 hybrid SVR 09942895 in the greenhouse and    transplanted seedlings into the field. Allowed to self-pollinate.    Seeds from the selfed plants were massed.-   July Year 3 Sowed F2 inbred line in the field. The anthocyaninless    line produced dark green, smooth, moderately firm and red fruit.    Individual plants resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10 were selected and    allowed to self-pollinate. Seed was collected from individual    plants.-   January Year 4 Planted F3 inbred line in the field. The line    produced firm red fruit. Individual plants resistant to Xcv races 0    to 10 were selected and allowed to self-pollinate. Seed was    collected from individual plants.-   July Year 4 Planted F4 inbred line in the field. Individual plants    resistant to Xcv Races 0 to 10 were selected and allowed to    self-pollinate. Seed was collected from individual plants.-   July Year 5 Planted F5 inbred line in the field. Individual plants    resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10 were selected and allowed to    self-pollinate. Seed was collected from individual plants.-   February Year 6 Planted F6 inbred line in a greenhouse. Individual    plants were selected and allowed to self-pollinate. Seed was    collected from individual plants.-   October Year 6 Planted F7 inbred line in the field. The line    develops an anthocyaninless medium-sized plant that displays a fair    amount of leaf curl while producing an adequate set of large, deep,    smooth fruit with pronounced shoulders. The fruit mature from dark    green to red. The line is resistant to Xcv races 0 to 10, PVY0 and    Tm0. The line was allowed to self-pollinate and the resulting seed    was bulked.-   January Year 7 Seed of the line was tested and found to be resistant    to Tm0 and Xcv races 0 to 10. The bulked seed was designated as line    SBR-E711417.

Selection criteria for the development of SBR-E711417 includedresistance to Xcv races 0 to 10, resistance to TM0, heavy fruit set,smooth and firm fruit, dark green immature fruit color maturing to adark red fruit color. Observations made during three generations ofreproduction and seed increase during the years 7, 8, and 9 indicatethat SBR-E711417 is uniform and stable within commercially acceptablelimits. As is true with other sweet pepper inbred lines, a smallpercentage of off-types can occur within commercially acceptable limitsfor almost any characteristic during the course of repeatedmultiplication. However no variants were found during the nine fieldsand six green house trials in which SBR-E711417 has been observed.

The parent lines are uniform and stable, as is a hybrid producedtherefrom. A small percentage of variants can occur within commerciallyacceptable limits for almost any characteristic during the course ofrepeated multiplication. However no variants are expected.

B. PHYSIOLOGICAL AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF PEPPER HYBRIDSV4844PB, Pepper Line SBR-99-1326 and Pepper Line SBR-E711417

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a plant having the physiological and morphologicalcharacteristics of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and the parent lines thereof.A description of the physiological and morphological characteristics ofsuch plants is presented in Tables 1-3.

TABLE 1 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of HybridSV4844PB Comparison Variety - Characteristic SV4844PB Early CalWonder 1. Species C. annuum C. annuum 2. Maturity (in region of bestadaptability) days from transplanting until 59 59 mature green stagedays from transplanting until 103 88 mature red or yellow stage daysfrom direct seeding until 102 94 mature green stage days from directseeding until 146 123 mature red or yellow stage 3. Plant habitsemi-spreading compact attitude upright/erect (De upright/erect Cayenne,Doux très long des Landes, Piquant d'Algérie) plant height 56.5 cm 45.4cm plant width 54.7 cm 45.6 cm length of stem from cotyledon 19.6 cm13.8 cm to first flower length of the third internode 103 mm 68 mm (fromsoil surface) length of stem medium (Belsir, short Lamuyo) shortenedinternode (in upper absent (California present part) wonder, De Cayenne)length of internode (on medium (Dolmi, primary side shoots; varietiesFlorian, Órias) without shortened internodes only) stem: hairiness ofnodes weak (Andevalo, absent or very weak Clovis) height medium (HRF)medium basal branches none none branch flexibility willowy (Cayennewillowy Long Red) stem strength (breakage strong strong resistance) 4.Leaf length of blade long (Cupido, Dolmy, long Encore, Mazurka, Monte)width of blade broad (California broad wonder, Golden calwonder, Seifor,Solario) width 83.7 mm 76.2 mm length 149.6 mm 144.3 mm petiole length58.4 mm 65.0 mm color dark green dark green color (RHS color chart) 147A137A intensity of green color dark (Dolmy, Tinto) dark mature leaf shapeovate (Balico, Sonar) ovate leaf and stem pubescence absent absentundulation of margin medium (Tenor) medium blistering strong (Greygo,PAZ medium pallagi) profile in cross section moderately concavemoderately concave (Doux italien, Favolor) glossiness medium (Alby,Eolo) medium 5. Flower peduncle: attitude erect (Fehér, Red Chili) erectflowers per leaf axil 1 1 calyx lobes 6.7 6.6 petals 7.1 6.9 diameter29.4 mm 32.6 mm corolla color white white corolla throat markings yellowyellow anther color yellow purple style length same as stamen exceedsstamen self-incompatibility absent present 6. Fruit group Bell (YoloWonder L.) Bell (Yolo Wonder L.) color (before maturity) green(California green Wonder, Lamuyo) intensity of color (before dark darkmaturity) immature fruit color dark green dark green immature fruitcolor (RHS 144A 144A color chart) attitude/position erect/uprighterect/upright (Kalocsai 601, Red Chili) length long (Doux d'Espagne,medium Majister) diameter broad (Clovis, broad Lamuyo) ratiolength/diameter medium (Adra, Cherry medium Sweet, Daniel, Delphin,Edino) calyx diameter 34.2 mm 33.8 mm fruit length 84.1 mm 78.0 mm fruitdiameter at calyx 83.6 mm 73.7 mm attachment fruit diameter at mid-point84.8 mm 80.9 mm flesh thickness at mid-point 5.3 mm 6.5 mm averagenumber of fruits per 7.2 11 plant % large fruits 20.30 (weight range:36.90 (weight range 200 to 300 g) 100 to 210 g) % medium fruits 42.50(weight range: 32.70 (weight range 100 to 199 g) 51 to 99 g) % smallfruits 37.00 (weight range: 30.30 (weight range 5 to 99 g) 1 to 50 g)average fruit weight 143.8 gm 82.4 gm fruit shape (longitudinal square(Delphin, Yolo square section) Wonder) fruit shape (cross section, atcircular (Cherry Sweet, angular/triangular level of placenta) Doux trèslong des Landes) sinuation of pericarp at basal weak (Donat) weak partsinuation of pericarp weak (Clovis, Sonar) weak excluding basal parttexture of surface slightly wrinkled smooth to very slightly (Doux trèslong des wrinkled Landes) intensity of color (at maturity) dark darkmature fruit color (RHS color  21A  45A chart) glossiness verystrong/shiny shiny (Floridor, Kappy) stalk cavity present (Bingor,present Lamuyo) depth of stalk cavity deep (Osir, Quadrate medium d'Astirosso, Surpas) pedicel length 44.6 mm 29.2 mm pedicel thickness 8.2 mm8.1 mm pedicel shape curved straight pedicel cavity present presentdepth of pedicel cavity 25.9 mm 17.4 mm stalk: length long (De Cayenne,medium Sierra Nevada, Sweet banana) stalk: thickness thick (Lamuyo,Trophy thick Palio) base shape cupped cupped shape of apex verydepressed (Kerala, moderately depressed Monte, Osir) shape Bell (YoloWonder L.) Bell (Yolo Wonder L.) set concentrated scattered depth ofinterloculary grooves medium (Clovis, deep Lamuyo, Marconi) number oflocules predominantly four and equally three and four more (Palio, PAZszentesi) % fruits with one locule 0% 0% % fruits with two locules 0% 0%% fruits with three locules 1% 26.70%   % fruits with four locules 80% 73.30%   % fruits with five or more 19%  0% locules average number oflocules 4.3 3.7 thickness of flesh thick (Andevalo, thick Bingor,Daniel, Topgirl) calyx: aspect non-enveloping/ non-enveloping/saucer-saucer-shaped shaped (Lamuyo, Sonar) pungency sweet sweet capsaicin inplacenta absent (Sonar) absent flavor strong pepper flavor strong pepperflavor glossiness shiny shiny 7. Seed seed cavity length 71.1 mm 55.4 mmseed cavity diameter 77.6 mm 62.1 mm placenta length 39.5 mm 28.0 mmnumber of seeds per fruit 238.5 132 grams per 1000 seeds 5.6 gm 5.1 gmcolor yellow yellow 8. Anthocyanin seedling hypocotyl absent (Albaregia,weak Albena) stem absent absent coloration of nodes weak weak intensityof coloration of very weak strong nodes leaf absent absent pedicelabsent absent calyx absent absent anther absent (Danza) present fruitcoloration absent (Lamuyo) weak beginning of flowering (1^(st) early(Carré doux extra medium flower on 2^(nd) flowering node) hatif, Cupido,Feher, Flaviano, Lito, Trophy) time of maturity medium (Lamuyo, lateLady Bell, Topgirl) *These are typical values. Values may vary due toenvironment. Other values that are substantially equivalent are alsowithin the scope of the invention.

TABLE 2 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of LineSBR-99-1326 Comparison Variety - Characteristic SBR-99-1326 Early CalWonder 1. Species C. annuum C. annuum 2. Maturity (in region of bestadaptability) days from transplanting until 57 67 mature green stagedays from transplanting until 109 85 mature red or yellow stage daysfrom direct seeding until 90 104 mature green stage days from directseeding until 142 122 mature red or yellow stage 3. Plant habit compactcompact attitude upright/erect (De upright/erect Cayenne, Doux très longdes Landes, Piquant d'Algérie) plant height 38.1 cm 40.9 cm plant width42.6 cm 47.1 cm length of stem from cotyledon 7.8 cm 10.7 cm to firstflower length of the third internode 68.8 mm 54 mm (from soil surface)length of stem short (Delphin, Trophy) medium shortened internode (inupper absent (California absent part) wonder, De Cayenne) length ofinternode (on medium (Dolmi, medium primary side shoots; varietiesFlorian, Órias) without shortened internodes only) stem: hairiness ofnodes absent or very weak absent or very weak (Arlequin) height medium(HRF) medium basal branches none few branch flexibility rigid (YoloWonder) rigid stem strength (breakage weak intermediate resistance) 4.Leaf length of blade medium (Atol, Blondy, medium Marconi, Merit,Anthea) width of blade medium (Albaregia, medium Balaton, Danubia,Marconi, Merit) width 52.9 mm 60 mm length 89.9 mm 113.3 mm petiolelength 36.4 mm 46 mm color medium green light green color (RHS colorchart) 146A 147A intensity of green color medium (Doux très light longdes Landes, Merit) mature leaf shape ovate (Balico, Sonar) ovate leafand stem pubescence light absent undulation of margin medium (Tenor)absent blistering strong (Greygo, PAZ weak pallagi) profile in crosssection moderately concave moderately concave (Doux italien, Favolor)glossiness medium (Alby, Eolo) medium 5. Flower peduncle: attitudesemi-drooping erect (Blondy) flowers per leaf axil 1 1 calyx lobes 6.5 6petals 6.5 6 diameter 27.7 mm 25.1 mm corolla color white white corollathroat markings yellow yellow anther color yellow purple style lengthsame as stamen same as stamen self-incompatibility absent absent 6.Fruit group Bell (Yolo Wonder L.) Bell (Yolo Wonder L.) color (beforematurity) green (California green Wonder, Lamuyo) intensity of color(before medium medium maturity) immature fruit color medium green mediumgreen immature fruit color (RHS 143A 137A color chart) attitude/positiondrooping/pendent (De drooping/pendent Cayenne, Lamuyo) length medium(Fehér, medium Lamuyo) diameter broad (Clovis, broad Lamuyo) ratiolength/diameter small (Bucano, medium Topgirl) calyx diameter 31.3 mm 32mm fruit length 72.8 mm 80 mm fruit diameter at calyx 74.2 mm 70 mmattachment fruit diameter at mid-point 76.2 mm 80 mm flesh thickness atmid-point 5.3 mm 6 mm average number of fruits per 10 10 plant % largefruits 27.00 (weight range: 50 (weight range 121 to 160 g) 140 to 199 g)% medium fruits 51.50 (weight range: 30 (weight range 51 to 120 g) 80 to139 g) % small fruits 21.50 (weight range: 20 (weight range 11 to 50 g)20 to 79 g) average fruit weight 90.8 gm 100 gm fruit shape(longitudinal square (Delphin, Yolo square section) Wonder) fruit shape(cross section, at circular (Cherry Sweet, quadrangular level ofplacenta) Doux très long des Landes) sinuation of pericarp at basal weak(Donat) very weak part sinuation of pericarp weak (Clovis, Sonar) veryweak excluding basal part texture of surface smooth or very slightlysmooth or very slightly wrinkled (Milord) wrinkled color (at maturity)red (Fehér, Lamuyo) red intensity of color (at maturity) medium darkmature fruit color red red mature fruit color (RHS color  44A  46Achart) glossiness medium/moderate medium/moderate (Carré doux extrahâtif, Lamuyo, Sonar) stalk cavity present (Bingor, absent Lamuyo) depthof stalk cavity medium (Lamuyo, Magister) pedicel length 34.9 mm 20 mmpedicel thickness 10.3 mm 6 mm pedicel shape curved curved pedicelcavity present absent depth of pedicel cavity 18.2 mm stalk: length long(De Cayenne, medium Sierra Nevada, Sweet banana) stalk: thickness thick(Lamuyo, Trophy medium Palio) base shape cupped cupped shape of apexvery depressed (Kerala, very depressed Monte, Osir) shape Bell (YoloWonder L.) Bell (Yolo Wonder L.) set scattered scattered depth ofinterloculary grooves medium (Clovis, medium Lamuyo, Marconi) number oflocules predominantly four and predominantly four and more (Palio, PAZmore szentesi) % fruits with one locule 0% % fruits with two locules 0%% fruits with three locules 16.70% 40%  % fruits with four locules63.00% 60%  % fruits with five or more 20.30% 0% locules average numberof locules 4 4 thickness of flesh medium (Fehér, thick Lamuyo) calyx:aspect non-enveloping/ non-enveloping/ saucer-shaped saucer-shaped(Lamuyo, Sonar) pungency sweet sweet capsaicin in placenta absent(Sonar) absent flavor moderate pepper flavor moderate glossinessmoderate shiny 7. Seed seed cavity length 59.4 mm 43 mm seed cavitydiameter 64.1 mm 52 mm placenta length 31.3 mm 22 mm number of seeds perfruit 109 100 grams per 1000 seeds 5.1 gm 7.5 gm color yellow yellow 8.Anthocyanin seedling hypocotyl absent (Albaregia, moderate Albena) stemweak absent coloration of nodes weak weak intensity of coloration ofweak (California medium nodes wonder, Clio, Doux d'Espagne, Dous trèslong des Landes, Golden Calwonder) leaf absent absent pedicel absentabsent calyx absent absent anther absent (Danza) present fruitcoloration moderate absent beginning of flowering (1^(st) early ((Carrédoux early flower on 2^(nd) flowering node) extra hâtif, Cupido, Fehér,Flaviano, Lito, Trophy) time of maturity very late (Cancun, mediumCalifornia wonder) *These are typical values. Values may vary due toenvironment. Other values that are substantially equivalent are alsowithin the scope of the invention.

TABLE 3 Physiological and Morphological Characteristics of LineSBR-E711417 Comparison Variety - Characteristic SBR-E711417 Early CalWonder 1. Species C. annuum C. annuum 2. Maturity (in region of bestadaptability) days from transplanting until 58 59 mature green stagedays from transplanting until 83 88 mature red or yellow stage days fromdirect seeding until 101 94 mature green stage days from direct seedinguntil 126 123 mature red or yellow stage 3. Plant habit compact compactattitude upright/erect (De upright/erect Cayenne, Doux très long desLandes, Piquant d'Algérie) plant height 54.8 cm 45.4 cm plant width 51.6cm 45.6 cm length of stem from cotyledon 13.2 cm 13.8 cm to first flowerlength of the third internode 77.3 mm 68 mm (from soil surface) lengthof stem medium (Belsir, short Lamuyo) shortened internode (in upperpresent (Fehér, present part) Kalocsai 601, Kalocsai 702) number ofinternodes between one to three (Fehér) one to three the first flowerand the shortened internodes (varieties with shortened internodes only)stem: hairiness of nodes absent or very weak absent or very weak(Arlequin) height medium (HRF) medium basal branches none none branchflexibility willowy (Cayenne willowy Long Red) stem strength (breakageintermediate strong resistance) 4. Leaf length of blade medium (Atol,Blondy, long Marconi, Merit, Anthea) width of blade medium (Albaregia,broad Balaton, Danubia, Marconi, Merit) width 59.6 mm 76.2 mm length123.2 mm 144.3 mm petiole length 56.8 mm 65.0 mm color dark green darkgreen color (RHS color chart) 147A 137A intensity of green color dark(Dolmy, Tinto) dark mature leaf shape lanceolate (Diavolo, ovate Recio)leaf and stem pubescence absent absent undulation of margin very weakmedium blistering medium (Merit) medium profile in cross sectionstrongly concave moderately concave (Slávy) glossiness medium (Alby,Eolo) medium 5. Flower peduncle: attitude erect (Fehér, Red Chili) erectflowers per leaf axil 1 1 calyx lobes 6.7 6.6 petals 7 6.9 diameter 26.9mm 32.6 mm corolla color white white corolla throat markings yellowyellow anther color yellow purple style length same as stamen exceedsstamen self-incompatibility absent present 6. Fruit group Bell (YoloWonder L.) Bell (Yolo Wonder L.) color (before maturity) green(California green Wonder, Lamuyo) intensity of color (before dark darkmaturity) immature fruit color dark green dark green immature fruitcolor (RHS 144A 144A color chart) attitude/position drooping/pendent (Deerect/upright Cayenne, Lamuyo) length short (Delphin, Petit medium carrédoux) diameter medium (Doux italien, broad Corno di toro) ratiolength/diameter medium (Adra, Cherry medium Sweet, Daniel, Delphin,Edino) calyx diameter 32.7 mm 33.8 mm fruit length 71.7 mm 78.0 mm fruitdiameter at calyx 66.4 mm 73.7 mm attachment fruit diameter at mid-point70.2 mm 80.9 mm flesh thickness at mid-point 3.9 mm 6.5 mm averagenumber of fruits per 4.7 11 plant % large fruits 3.00 (weight range:36.90 (weight range 100 to 130 g) 100 to 210 g) % medium fruits 53.50(weight range: 32.70 (weight range 51 to 99 g) 51 to 99 g) % smallfruits 42.20 (weight range: 30.30 (weight range 10 to 50 g) 1 to 50 g)average fruit weight 59.8 gm 82.4 gm fruit shape (longitudinal square(Delphin, Yolo square section) Wonder) fruit shape (cross section, atquadrangular angular/triangular level of placenta) sinuation of pericarpat basal weak (Donat) weak part sinuation of pericarp weak (Clovis,Sonar) weak excluding basal part texture of surface slightly wrinkledsmooth to very slightly (Doux très long des wrinkled Landes) color (atmaturity) red (Fehér, Lamuyo) red intensity of color (at maturity) darkdark mature fruit color red red mature fruit color (RHS color  46A  45Achart) glossiness strong (Doux italien, shiny Trophy) stalk cavitypresent (Bingor, present Lamuyo) depth of stalk cavity shallow (Delphin,medium Doux italien, Fehér, Latino) pedicel length 57.0 mm 29.2 mmpedicel thickness 7.3 mm 8.1 mm pedicel shape curved straight pedicelcavity present present depth of pedicel cavity 11.2 mm 17.4 mm stalk:length long (De Cayenne, medium Sierra Nevada, Sweet banana) stalk:thickness medium (Doux italien, thick Surpas) base shape cupped cuppedshape of apex moderately acute moderately depressed shape Bell (YoloWonder L.) Bell (Yolo Wonder L.) set scattered scattered depth ofinterloculary grooves shallow (Milord, deep Topgirl) number of loculespredominantly four and equally three and four more (Palio, PAZ szentesi)% fruits with one locule 0% 0% % fruits with two locules 0% 0% % fruitswith three locules 7% 26.70%   % fruits with four locules 80%  73.30%  % fruits with five or more 13.30%   0% locules average number of locules4.1 3.7 thickness of flesh thin (Banán, Carré thick doux extra hâtif,Dous très long des Landes) calyx: aspect non-enveloping/ non-enveloping/saucer-shaped saucer-shaped (Lamuyo, Sonar) pungency sweet sweetcapsaicin in placenta absent (Sonar) absent flavor strong pepper flavorstrong pepper flavor glossiness shiny shiny 7. Seed seed cavity length56.8 mm 55.4 mm seed cavity diameter 59.2 mm 62.1 mm placenta length30.0 mm 28.0 mm number of seeds per fruit 117.9 132 grams per 1000 seeds4.4 gm 5.1 gm color yellow yellow 8. Anthocyanin seedling hypocotylabsent (Albaregia, weak Albena) stem absent absent coloration of nodesweak weak intensity of coloration of weak (California strong nodeswonder, Clio, Doux d'Espagne, Dous très long des Landes, GoldenCalwonder) leaf absent absent pedicel absent absent calyx absent absentanther absent (Danza) present fruit coloration absent (Lamuyo) weakbeginning of flowering (1^(st) medium (Lamuyo, medium flower on 2^(nd)flowering node) Latino) time of maturity late (Daniel, Doux lated'Espagne) *These are typical values. Values may vary due toenvironment. Other values that are substantially equivalent are alsowithin the scope of the invention.

C. BREEDING PEPPER PLANTS

One aspect of the current invention concerns methods for producing seedof pepper hybrid SV4844PB involving crossing pepper lines SBR-99-1326and SBR-E711417. Alternatively, in other embodiments of the invention,hybrid SV4844PB, line SBR-99-1326, or line SBR-E711417 may be crossedwith itself or with any second plant. Such methods can be used forpropagation of hybrid SV4844PB and/or the pepper lines SBR-99-1326 andSBR-E711417, or can be used to produce plants that are derived fromhybrid SV4844PB and/or the pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417.Plants derived from hybrid SV4844PB and/or the pepper lines SBR-99-1326and SBR-E711417 may be used, in certain embodiments, for the developmentof new pepper varieties.

The development of new varieties using one or more starting varieties iswell known in the art. In accordance with the invention, novel varietiesmay be created by crossing hybrid SV4844PB followed by multiplegenerations of breeding according to such well known methods. Newvarieties may be created by crossing with any second plant. In selectingsuch a second plant to cross for the purpose of developing novel lines,it may be desired to choose those plants which either themselves exhibitone or more selected desirable characteristics or which exhibit thedesired characteristic(s) when in hybrid combination. Once initialcrosses have been made, inbreeding and selection take place to producenew varieties. For development of a uniform line, often five or moregenerations of selfing and selection are involved.

Uniform lines of new varieties may also be developed by way ofdouble-haploids. This technique allows the creation of true breedinglines without the need for multiple generations of selfing andselection. In this manner true breeding lines can be produced in aslittle as one generation. Haploid embryos may be produced frommicrospores, pollen, anther cultures, or ovary cultures. The haploidembryos may then be doubled autonomously, or by chemical treatments(e.g. colchicine treatment). Alternatively, haploid embryos may be growninto haploid plants and treated to induce chromosome doubling. In eithercase, fertile homozygous plants are obtained. In accordance with theinvention, any of such techniques may be used in connection with a plantof the invention and progeny thereof to achieve a homozygous line.

Backcrossing can also be used to improve an inbred plant. Backcrossingtransfers a specific desirable trait from one inbred or non-inbredsource to an inbred that lacks that trait. This can be accomplished, forexample, by first crossing a superior inbred (A) (recurrent parent) to adonor inbred (non-recurrent parent), which carries the appropriate locusor loci for the trait in question. The progeny of this cross are thenmated back to the superior recurrent parent (A) followed by selection inthe resultant progeny for the desired trait to be transferred from thenon-recurrent parent. After five or more backcross generations withselection for the desired trait, the progeny have the characteristicbeing transferred, but are like the superior parent for most or almostall other loci. The last backcross generation would be selfed to givepure breeding progeny for the trait being transferred.

The plants of the present invention are particularly well suited for thedevelopment of new lines based on the elite nature of the geneticbackground of the plants. In selecting a second plant to cross withSV4844PB and/or pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 for the purposeof developing novel pepper lines, it will typically be preferred tochoose those plants which either themselves exhibit one or more selecteddesirable characteristics or which exhibit the desired characteristic(s)when in hybrid combination. Examples of desirable traits may include, inspecific embodiments, high seed yield, high seed germination, seedlingvigor, high fruit yield, disease tolerance or resistance, andadaptability for soil and climate conditions. Consumer-driven traits,such as a fruit shape, color, texture, and taste are other examples oftraits that may be incorporated into new lines of pepper plantsdeveloped by this invention.

D. PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS

As described above, hybrid SV4844PB exhibits desirable traits, asconferred by pepper lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417. The performancecharacteristics of hybrid SV4844PB and pepper lines SBR-99-1326 andSBR-E711417 were the subject of an objective analysis of the performancetraits relative to other varieties. The results of the analysis arepresented below.

SBR-99-1326 develops a medium-sized plant that produces a heavy set ofsmooth, firm, deep (length:diameter (LD)>1), dark green, medium-sizedfruit. The fruit mature to a red fruit with a consistent shape and set.The line is resistant to the Tobacco mosaic virus pathotype P₀ (Tm0; L₁gene). It is also resistant to bacterial leaf spot races 0 through 10caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria (Xcv; bs₅ gene).

Early California Wonder is believed to be a similar commercial varietycompared to SBR 99-1326. The characteristics which best describe thedifferences between the two include (but may not be limited to):

-   -   SBR 99-1326 is resistant to Xcv races 0 through 10 (bs₅ gene).        Early California Wonder lacks this gene and is susceptible.    -   SBR 99-1326 is resistant to Tm0 (L₁ gene). Early California        Wonder lacks this gene and is susceptible.    -   SBR 99-1326 is anthocyaninless while Early California Wonder        lacks this gene and can show anthocyanin on its fruit.

SBR-E711417 develops an anthocyaninless medium-sized plant that displaysa fair amount of leaf curl while producing an adequate set of large,deep, smooth fruit with pronounced shoulders. The fruit mature from darkgreen to red. The line is resistant to Xanthomonas campestris pv.vesicatoria (Xcv; bs₅ gene) races 0 to 10, Potato Y Virus pathotype P0(PVY0; pvr2-2 gene) and Tobamovirus pathotype P0 (Tm0; L₁ gene).

Early California Wonder is believed to be a similar commercial varietycompared to SBR-E711417. The characteristics which best describe thedifferences between the two include (but may not be limited to):

-   -   SBR-E711417 is resistant to Xcv races 0 through 10 (bs₅ gene).        Early California Wonder lacks this gene and is susceptible.    -   SBR-E711417 is resistant to Tm0 (L₁ gene). Early California        Wonder lacks this gene and is susceptible.    -   SBR-E711417 is resistant to PVY0 (pvr2-2 gene). Early California        Wonder lacks this gene and is susceptible.    -   SBR-E711417 is anthocyaninless while Early California Wonder        lacks this gene and can show anthocyanin on its fruit.

TABLE 4 Performance Characteristics for Hybrid SV4844PB and Comparativevarieties Fruit Fruit weight Mean Fruit per plant per plant Weight FruitLength: Trial ----------------- % 9979325 ---------------- diameterratio 1 106 123 116 0.99 2 87 97 111 0.96 3 72 83 115 1.01 4 79 74 931.24 5 61 59 96 1.06 6 65 80 124 1.18 7 88 100 114 1.05 8 94 96 101 1.16Mean 82 89 109 1.08

E. FURTHER EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In certain aspects of the invention, plants described herein areprovided modified to include at least a first desired heritable trait.Such plants may, in one embodiment, be developed by a plant breedingtechnique called backcrossing, wherein essentially all of themorphological and physiological characteristics of a variety arerecovered in addition to a genetic locus transferred into the plant viathe backcrossing technique. The term single locus converted plant asused herein refers to those pepper plants which are developed by a plantbreeding technique called backcrossing, wherein essentially all of themorphological and physiological characteristics of a variety arerecovered in addition to the single locus transferred into the varietyvia the backcrossing technique. By essentially all of the morphologicaland physiological characteristics, it is meant that the characteristicsof a plant are recovered that are otherwise present when compared in thesame environment, other than an occasional variant trait that mightarise during backcrossing or direct introduction of a transgene.

Backcrossing methods can be used with the present invention to improveor introduce a characteristic into the present variety. The parentalpepper plant which contributes the locus for the desired characteristicis termed the nonrecurrent or donor parent. This terminology refers tothe fact that the nonrecurrent parent is used one time in the backcrossprotocol and therefore does not recur. The parental pepper plant towhich the locus or loci from the nonrecurrent parent are transferred isknown as the recurrent parent as it is used for several rounds in thebackcrossing protocol.

In a typical backcross protocol, the original variety of interest(recurrent parent) is crossed to a second variety (nonrecurrent parent)that carries the single locus of interest to be transferred. Theresulting progeny from this cross are then crossed again to therecurrent parent and the process is repeated until a pepper plant isobtained wherein essentially all of the morphological and physiologicalcharacteristics of the recurrent parent are recovered in the convertedplant, in addition to the single transferred locus from the nonrecurrentparent.

The selection of a suitable recurrent parent is an important step for asuccessful backcrossing procedure. The goal of a backcross protocol isto alter or substitute a single trait or characteristic in the originalvariety. To accomplish this, a single locus of the recurrent variety ismodified or substituted with the desired locus from the nonrecurrentparent, while retaining essentially all of the rest of the desiredgenetic, and therefore the desired physiological and morphologicalconstitution of the original variety. The choice of the particularnonrecurrent parent will depend on the purpose of the backcross; one ofthe major purposes is to add some commercially desirable trait to theplant. The exact backcrossing protocol will depend on the characteristicor trait being altered and the genetic distance between the recurrentand nonrecurrent parents. Although backcrossing methods are simplifiedwhen the characteristic being transferred is a dominant allele, arecessive allele, or an additive allele (between recessive anddominant), may also be transferred. In this instance it may be necessaryto introduce a test of the progeny to determine if the desiredcharacteristic has been successfully transferred.

In one embodiment, progeny pepper plants of a backcross in which a plantdescribed herein is the recurrent parent comprise (i) the desired traitfrom the non-recurrent parent and (ii) all of the physiological andmorphological characteristics of pepper the recurrent parent asdetermined at the 5% significance level when grown in the sameenvironmental conditions.

New varieties can also be developed from more than two parents. Thetechnique, known as modified backcrossing, uses different recurrentparents during the backcrossing. Modified backcrossing may be used toreplace the original recurrent parent with a variety having certain moredesirable characteristics or multiple parents may be used to obtaindifferent desirable characteristics from each.

With the development of molecular markers associated with particulartraits, it is possible to add additional traits into an established germline, such as represented here, with the end result being substantiallythe same base germplasm with the addition of a new trait or traits.Molecular breeding, as described in Moose and Mumm, 2008 (PlantPhysiology, 147: 969-977), for example, and elsewhere, provides amechanism for integrating single or multiple traits or QTL into an eliteline. This molecular breeding-facilitated movement of a trait or traitsinto an elite line may encompass incorporation of a particular genomicfragment associated with a particular trait of interest into the eliteline by the mechanism of identification of the integrated genomicfragment with the use of flanking or associated marker assays. In theembodiment represented here, one, two, three or four genomic loci, forexample, may be integrated into an elite line via this methodology. Whenthis elite line containing the additional loci is further crossed withanother parental elite line to produce hybrid offspring, it is possibleto then incorporate at least eight separate additional loci into thehybrid. These additional loci may confer, for example, such traits as adisease resistance or a fruit quality trait. In one embodiment, eachlocus may confer a separate trait. In another embodiment, loci may needto be homozygous and exist in each parent line to confer a trait in thehybrid. In yet another embodiment, multiple loci may be combined toconfer a single robust phenotype of a desired trait.

Many single locus traits have been identified that are not regularlyselected for in the development of a new inbred but that can be improvedby backcrossing techniques. Single locus traits may or may not betransgenic; examples of these traits include, but are not limited to,herbicide resistance, resistance to bacterial, fungal, or viral disease,insect resistance, modified fatty acid or carbohydrate metabolism, andaltered nutritional quality. These comprise genes generally inheritedthrough the nucleus.

Direct selection may be applied where the single locus acts as adominant trait. For this selection process, the progeny of the initialcross are assayed for viral resistance and/or the presence of thecorresponding gene prior to the backcrossing. Selection eliminates anyplants that do not have the desired gene and resistance trait, and onlythose plants that have the trait are used in the subsequent backcross.This process is then repeated for all additional backcross generations.

Selection of pepper plants for breeding is not necessarily dependent onthe phenotype of a plant and instead can be based on geneticinvestigations. For example, one can utilize a suitable genetic markerwhich is closely genetically linked to a trait of interest. One of thesemarkers can be used to identify the presence or absence of a trait inthe offspring of a particular cross, and can be used in selection ofprogeny for continued breeding. This technique is commonly referred toas marker assisted selection. Any other type of genetic marker or otherassay which is able to identify the relative presence or absence of atrait of interest in a plant can also be useful for breeding purposes.Procedures for marker assisted selection are well known in the art. Suchmethods will be of particular utility in the case of recessive traitsand variable phenotypes, or where conventional assays may be moreexpensive, time consuming or otherwise disadvantageous. Types of geneticmarkers which could be used in accordance with the invention include,but are not necessarily limited to, Simple Sequence Length Polymorphisms(SSLPs) (Williams et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 1 8:6531-6535, 1990),Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), DNA AmplificationFingerprinting (DAF), Sequence Characterized Amplified Regions (SCARs),Arbitrary Primed Polymerase Chain Reaction (AP-PCR), Amplified FragmentLength Polymorphisms (AFLPs) (EP 534 858, specifically incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety), and Single NucleotidePolymorphisms (SNPs) (Wang et al., Science, 280:1077-1082, 1998).

F. PLANTS DERIVED BY GENETIC ENGINEERING

Many useful traits that can be introduced by backcrossing, as well asdirectly into a plant, are those which are introduced by genetictransformation techniques. Genetic transformation may therefore be usedto insert a selected transgene into a plant of the invention or may,alternatively, be used for the preparation of transgenes which can beintroduced by backcrossing. Methods for the transformation of plantsthat are well known to those of skill in the art and applicable to manycrop species include, but are not limited to, electroporation,microprojectile bombardment, Agrobacterium-mediated transformation anddirect DNA uptake by protoplasts.

To effect transformation by electroporation, one may employ eitherfriable tissues, such as a suspension culture of cells or embryogeniccallus or alternatively one may transform immature embryos or otherorganized tissue directly. In this technique, one would partiallydegrade the cell walls of the chosen cells by exposing them topectin-degrading enzymes (pectolyases) or mechanically wound tissues ina controlled manner.

An efficient method for delivering transforming DNA segments to plantcells is microprojectile bombardment. In this method, particles arecoated with nucleic acids and delivered into cells by a propellingforce. Exemplary particles include those comprised of tungsten,platinum, and preferably, gold. For the bombardment, cells in suspensionare concentrated on filters or solid culture medium. Alternatively,immature embryos or other target cells may be arranged on solid culturemedium. The cells to be bombarded are positioned at an appropriatedistance below the macroprojectile stopping plate.

An illustrative embodiment of a method for delivering DNA into plantcells by acceleration is the Biolistics Particle Delivery System, whichcan be used to propel particles coated with DNA or cells through ascreen, such as a stainless steel or Nytex screen, onto a surfacecovered with target cells. The screen disperses the particles so thatthey are not delivered to the recipient cells in large aggregates.Microprojectile bombardment techniques are widely applicable, and may beused to transform virtually any plant species.

Agrobacterium-mediated transfer is another widely applicable system forintroducing gene loci into plant cells. An advantage of the technique isthat DNA can be introduced into whole plant tissues, thereby bypassingthe need for regeneration of an intact plant from a protoplast. ModernAgrobacterium transformation vectors are capable of replication in E.coli as well as Agrobacterium, allowing for convenient manipulations(Klee et al., Bio-Technology, 3(7):637-642, 1985). Moreover, recenttechnological advances in vectors for Agrobacterium-mediated genetransfer have improved the arrangement of genes and restriction sites inthe vectors to facilitate the construction of vectors capable ofexpressing various polypeptide coding genes. The vectors described haveconvenient multi-linker regions flanked by a promoter and apolyadenylation site for direct expression of inserted polypeptidecoding genes. Additionally, Agrobacterium containing both armed anddisarmed Ti genes can be used for transformation.

In those plant strains where Agrobacterium-mediated transformation isefficient, it is the method of choice because of the facile and definednature of the gene locus transfer. The use of Agrobacterium-mediatedplant integrating vectors to introduce DNA into plant cells is wellknown in the art (Fraley et al., Bio/Technology, 3:629-635, 1985; U.S.Pat. No. 5,563,055).

Transformation of plant protoplasts also can be achieved using methodsbased on calcium phosphate precipitation, polyethylene glycol treatment,electroporation, and combinations of these treatments (see, e.g.,Potrykus et al., Mol. Gen. Genet., 199:183-188, 1985; Omirulleh et al.,Plant Mol. Biol., 21(3):415-428, 1993; Fromm et al., Nature,312:791-793, 1986; Uchimiya et al., Mol. Gen. Genet., 204:204, 1986;Marcotte et al., Nature, 335:454, 1988). Transformation of plants andexpression of foreign genetic elements is exemplified in Choi et al.(Plant Cell Rep., 13: 344-348, 1994), and Ellul et al. (Theor. Appl.Genet., 107:462-469, 2003).

A number of promoters have utility for plant gene expression for anygene of interest including but not limited to selectable markers,scoreable markers, genes for pest tolerance, disease resistance,nutritional enhancements and any other gene of agronomic interest.Examples of constitutive promoters useful for plant gene expressioninclude, but are not limited to, the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV)P-35S promoter, which confers constitutive, high-level expression inmost plant tissues (see, e.g., Odel et al., Nature, 313:810, 1985),including in monocots (see, e.g., Dekeyser et al., Plant Cell, 2:591,1990; Terada and Shimamoto, Mol. Gen. Genet., 220:389, 1990); a tandemlyduplicated version of the CaMV 35S promoter, the enhanced 35S promoter(P-e35S);1 the nopaline synthase promoter (An et al., Plant Physiol.,88:547, 1988); the octopine synthase promoter (Fromm et al., Plant Cell,1:977, 1989); and the figwort mosaic virus (P-FMV) promoter as describedin U.S. Pat. No. 5,378,619 and an enhanced version of the FMV promoter(P-eFMV) where the promoter sequence of P-FMV is duplicated in tandem;the cauliflower mosaic virus 19S promoter; a sugarcane bacilliform viruspromoter; a commelina yellow mottle virus promoter; and other plant DNAvirus promoters known to express in plant cells.

A variety of plant gene promoters that are regulated in response toenvironmental, hormonal, chemical, and/or developmental signals can alsobe used for expression of an operably linked gene in plant cells,including promoters regulated by (1) heat (Callis et al., PlantPhysiol., 88:965, 1988), (2) light (e.g., pea rbcS-3A promoter,Kuhlemeier et al., Plant Cell, 1:471, 1989; maize rbcS promoter,Schaffner and Sheen, Plant Cell, 3:997, 1991; or chlorophyll a/b-bindingprotein promoter, Simpson et al., EMBO J., 4:2723, 1985), (3) hormones,such as abscisic acid (Marcotte et al., Plant Cell, 1:969, 1989), (4)wounding (e.g., wunl, Siebertz et al., Plant Cell, 1:961, 1989); or (5)chemicals such as methyl jasmonate, salicylic acid, or Safener. It mayalso be advantageous to employ organ-specific promoters (e.g., Roshal etal., EMBO J., 6:1155, 1987; Schernthaner et al., EMBO J., 7:1249, 1988;Bustos et al., Plant Cell, 1:839, 1989).

Exemplary nucleic acids which may be introduced to plants of thisinvention include, for example, DNA sequences or genes from anotherspecies, or even genes or sequences which originate with or are presentin the same species, but are incorporated into recipient cells bygenetic engineering methods rather than classical reproduction orbreeding techniques. However, the term “exogenous” is also intended torefer to genes that are not normally present in the cell beingtransformed, or perhaps simply not present in the form, structure, etc.,as found in the transforming DNA segment or gene, or genes which arenormally present and that one desires to express in a manner thatdiffers from the natural expression pattern, e.g., to over-express.Thus, the term “exogenous” gene or DNA is intended to refer to any geneor DNA segment that is introduced into a recipient cell, regardless ofwhether a similar gene may already be present in such a cell. The typeof DNA included in the exogenous DNA can include DNA which is alreadypresent in the plant cell, DNA from another plant, DNA from a differentorganism, or a DNA generated externally, such as a DNA sequencecontaining an antisense message of a gene, or a DNA sequence encoding asynthetic or modified version of a gene.

Many hundreds if not thousands of different genes are known and couldpotentially be introduced into a pepper plant according to theinvention. Non-limiting examples of particular genes and correspondingphenotypes one may choose to introduce into a pepper plant include oneor more genes for insect tolerance, such as a Bacillus thuringiensis(B.t.) gene, pest tolerance such as genes for fungal disease control,herbicide tolerance such as genes conferring glyphosate tolerance, andgenes for quality improvements such as yield, nutritional enhancements,environmental or stress tolerances, or any desirable changes in plantphysiology, growth, development, morphology or plant product(s). Forexample, structural genes would include any gene that confers insecttolerance including but not limited to a Bacillus insect control proteingene as described in WO 99/31248, herein incorporated by reference inits entirety, U.S. Pat. No. 5,689,052, herein incorporated by referencein its entirety, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,500,365 and 5,880,275, hereinincorporated by reference in their entirety. In another embodiment, thestructural gene can confer tolerance to the herbicide glyphosate asconferred by genes including, but not limited to Agrobacterium strainCP4 glyphosate resistant EPSPS gene (aroA:CP4) as described in U.S. Pat.No. 5,633,435, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety, orglyphosate oxidoreductase gene (GOX) as described in U.S. Pat. No.5,463,175, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Alternatively, the DNA coding sequences can affect these phenotypes byencoding a non-translatable RNA molecule that causes the targetedinhibition of expression of an endogenous gene, for example viaantisense- or cosuppression-mediated mechanisms (see, for example, Birdet al., Biotech. Gen. Engin. Rev., 9:207, 1991). The RNA could also be acatalytic RNA molecule (i.e., a ribozyme) engineered to cleave a desiredendogenous mRNA product (see for example, Gibson and Shillito, Mol.Biotech., 7:125, 1997). Thus, any gene which produces a protein or mRNAwhich expresses a phenotype or morphology change of interest is usefulfor the practice of the present invention.

G. DEFINITIONS

In the description and tables herein, a number of terms are used. Inorder to provide a clear and consistent understanding of thespecification and claims, the following definitions are provided:

Allele: Any of one or more alternative forms of a gene locus, all ofwhich alleles relate to one trait or characteristic. In a diploid cellor organism, the two alleles of a given gene occupy corresponding locion a pair of homologous chromosomes.

Backcrossing: A process in which a breeder repeatedly crosses hybridprogeny, for example a first generation hybrid (F₁), back to one of theparents of the hybrid progeny. Backcrossing can be used to introduce oneor more single locus conversions from one genetic background intoanother.

Crossing: The mating of two parent plants.

Cross-pollination: Fertilization by the union of two gametes fromdifferent plants.

Diploid: A cell or organism having two sets of chromosomes.

Emasculate: The removal of plant male sex organs or the inactivation ofthe organs with a cytoplasmic or nuclear genetic factor or a chemicalagent conferring male sterility.

Enzymes: Molecules which can act as catalysts in biological reactions.

F₁ Hybrid: The first generation progeny of the cross of two nonisogenicplants.

Genotype: The genetic constitution of a cell or organism.

Haploid: A cell or organism having one set of the two sets ofchromosomes in a diploid.

Linkage: A phenomenon wherein alleles on the same chromosome tend tosegregate together more often than expected by chance if theirtransmission was independent.

Marker: A readily detectable phenotype, preferably inherited incodominant fashion (both alleles at a locus in a diploid heterozygoteare readily detectable), with no environmental variance component, i.e.,heritability of 1.

Phenotype: The detectable characteristics of a cell or organism, whichcharacteristics are the manifestation of gene expression.

Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL): Quantitative trait loci (QTL) refer togenetic loci that control to some degree numerically representabletraits that are usually continuously distributed.

Resistance: As used herein, the terms “resistance” and “tolerance” areused interchangeably to describe plants that show no symptoms to aspecified biotic pest, pathogen, abiotic influence or environmentalcondition. These terms are also used to describe plants showing somesymptoms but that are still able to produce marketable product with anacceptable yield. Some plants that are referred to as resistant ortolerant are only so in the sense that they may still produce a crop,even though the plants are stunted and the yield is reduced.

Regeneration: The development of a plant from tissue culture.

Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) color chart value: The RHS color chartis a standardized reference which allows accurate identification of anycolor. A color's designation on the chart describes its hue, brightnessand saturation. A color is precisely named by the RHS color chart byidentifying the group name, sheet number and letter, e.g., Yellow-OrangeGroup 19A or Red Group 41B.

Self-pollination: The transfer of pollen from the anther to the stigmaof the same plant.

Single Locus Converted (Conversion) Plant: Plants which are developed bya plant breeding technique called backcrossing, wherein essentially allof the morphological and physiological characteristics of a peppervariety are recovered in addition to the characteristics of the singlelocus transferred into the variety via the backcrossing technique and/orby genetic transformation.

Substantially Equivalent: A characteristic that, when compared, does notshow a statistically significant difference (e.g., p=0.05) from themean.

Tissue Culture: A composition comprising isolated cells of the same or adifferent type or a collection of such cells organized into parts of aplant.

Transgene: A genetic locus comprising a sequence which has beenintroduced into the genome of a pepper plant by transformation.

H. DEPOSIT INFORMATION

A deposit of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and inbred parent lines SBR-99-1326and SBR-E711417, disclosed above and recited in the claims, has beenmade with the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), 10801 UniversityBlvd., Manassas, Va. 20110-2209. The dates of deposits were Oct. 7,2013, Oct. 7, 2013, and Mar. 4, 2014, respectively. The accessionnumbers for those deposited seeds of pepper hybrid SV4844PB and inbredparent lines SBR-99-1326 and SBR-E711417 are ATCC Accession No.PTA-120612, ATCC Accession No. PTA-120613, and ATCC Accession No.PTA-121060, respectively. Upon issuance of a patent, all restrictionsupon the deposits will be removed, and the deposits are intended to meetall of the requirements of 37 C.F.R. §1.801-1.809. The deposits will bemaintained in the depository for a period of 30 years, or 5 years afterthe last request, or for the effective life of the patent, whichever islonger, and will be replaced if necessary during that period.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail byway of illustration and example for purposes of clarity andunderstanding, it will be obvious that certain changes and modificationsmay be practiced within the scope of the invention, as limited only bythe scope of the appended claims.

All references cited herein are hereby expressly incorporated herein byreference.

What is claimed is:
 1. A pepper plant comprising at least a first set ofthe chromosomes of pepper line SBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417, asample of seed of said lines having been deposited under ATCC AccessionNumber PTA-120613 and ATCC Accession Number PTA-121060, respectively. 2.A pepper seed comprising at least a first set of the chromosomes ofpepper line SBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417, a sample of seed ofsaid lines having been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-120613and ATCC Accession Number PTA-121060, respectively.
 3. The plant ofclaim 1, which is an inbred.
 4. The plant of claim 1, which is a hybrid.5. The seed of claim 2, which is an inbred.
 6. The seed of claim 2,which is a hybrid.
 7. The plant of claim 4, wherein the hybrid plant ispepper hybrid SV4844PB, a sample of seed of said hybrid SV4844PB havingbeen deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-120612.
 8. The seed ofclaim 6, defined as a seed of pepper hybrid SV4844PB, a sample of seedof said hybrid SV4844PB having been deposited under ATCC AccessionNumber PTA-120612.
 9. The seed of claim 2, defined as a seed of lineSBR-99-1326 or line SBR-E711417.
 10. A plant part of the plant ofclaim
 1. 11. The plant part of claim 10, further defined as a leaf, anovule, pollen, a fruit, or a cell.
 12. A pepper plant having all thephysiological and morphological characteristics of the pepper plant ofclaim
 7. 13. A tissue culture of regenerable cells of the plant ofclaim
 1. 14. The tissue culture according to claim 13, comprising cellsor protoplasts from a plant part selected from the group consisting ofembryos, meristems, cotyledons, pollen, leaves, anthers, roots, roottips, pistil, flower, seed and stalks.
 15. A pepper plant regeneratedfrom the tissue culture of claim 13 wherein said plant otherwisecomprises all of the morphological and physiological characteristics ofthe pepper plant comprising at least a first set of the chromosomes ofpepper line SBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417, a sample of seed ofsaid lines having been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-120613and ATCC Accession Number PTA-121060, respectively.
 16. A method ofvegetatively propagating the pepper plant of claim 1 comprising thesteps of: (a) collecting tissue capable of being propagated from theplant according to claim 1; (b) cultivating said tissue to obtainproliferated shoots; and (c) rooting said proliferated shoots to obtainrooted plantlets.
 17. The method of claim 16, further comprising growingat least a first pepper plant from said rooted plantlets.
 18. A methodof introducing a desired trait into a pepper line comprising: (a)utilizing as a recurrent parent a plant of either pepper lineSBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417, by crossing a plant of pepperline SBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417 with a second donor pepperplant that comprises a desired trait to produce F1 progeny, a sample ofseed of said lines having been deposited under ATCC Accession NumberPTA-120613, and ATCC Accession Number PTA-121060, respectively; (b)selecting an F1 progeny that comprises the desired trait; (c)backcrossing the selected F1 progeny with a plant of the same pepperline used as the recurrent parent in step (a), to produce backcrossprogeny; (d) selecting backcross progeny comprising the desired traitand the physiological and morphological characteristics of the recurrentparent pepper line used in step (a); and (e) repeating steps (c) and (d)three or more times to produce selected fourth or higher backcrossprogeny that comprise the desired trait, and otherwise compriseessentially all of the morphological and physiological characteristicsof the recurrent parent pepper line used in step (a).
 19. A pepper plantproduced by the method of claim
 18. 20. A method of producing a pepperplant comprising an added trait, the method comprising introducing atransgene conferring the trait into a plant of pepper hybrid SV4844PB,pepper line SBR-99-1326 or pepper line SBR-E711417, a sample of seed ofsaid hybrid and lines having been deposited under ATCC Accession NumberPTA-120612, ATCC Accession Number PTA-120613, and ATCC Accession NumberPTA-121060, respectively.
 21. A pepper plant produced by the method ofclaim
 20. 22. The plant of claim 1, further comprising a transgene. 23.The plant of claim 22, wherein the transgene confers a trait selectedfrom the group consisting of male sterility, herbicide tolerance, insectresistance, pest resistance, disease resistance, modified fatty acidmetabolism, environmental stress tolerance, modified carbohydratemetabolism and modified protein metabolism.
 24. The plant of claim 1,further comprising a single locus conversion wherein said plantotherwise comprises essentially all of the morphological andphysiological characteristics of the pepper plant comprising at least afirst set of the chromosomes of pepper line SBR-99-1326 or pepper lineSBR-E711417, a sample of seed of said lines having been deposited underATCC Accession Number PTA-120613 and ATCC Accession Number PTA-121060,respectively.
 25. The plant of claim 24, wherein the single locusconversion confers a trait selected from the group consisting of malesterility, herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, pest resistance,disease resistance, modified fatty acid metabolism, environmental stresstolerance, modified carbohydrate metabolism and modified proteinmetabolism.
 26. A method for producing a seed of a pepper plant derivedfrom at least one of pepper hybrid SV4844PB, pepper line SBR-99-1326 orpepper line SBR-E711417 comprising the steps of: (a) crossing a pepperplant of hybrid SV4844PB, line SBR-99-1326 or line SBR-E711417 withitself or a second pepper plant; a sample of seed of said hybrid andlines having been deposited under ATCC Accession Number PTA-120612, ATCCAccession Number PTA-120613, and ATCC Accession Number PTA-121060,respectively; and (b) allowing seed of a hybrid SV4844PB, lineSBR-99-1326 or line SBR-E711417-derived pepper plant to form.
 27. Themethod of claim 26, further comprising the steps of: (c) selling a plantgrown from said hybrid SV4844PB, line SBR-99-1326 or lineSBR-E711417-derived pepper seed to yield additional hybrid SV4844PB,line SBR-99-1326 or line SBR-E711417-derived pepper seed; (d) growingsaid additional hybrid SV4844PB, line SBR-99-1326 or lineSBR-E711417-derived pepper seed of step (c) to yield additional hybridSV4844PB, line SBR-99-1326 or line SBR-E711417-derived pepper plants;and (e) repeating the crossing and growing steps of (c) and (d) togenerate at least a first further hybrid SV4844PB, line SBR-99-1326 orline SBR-E711417-derived pepper plant.
 28. The method of claim 26,wherein the second pepper plant is of an inbred pepper line.
 29. Themethod of claim 26, comprising crossing line SBR-99-1326 with lineSBR-E711417, a sample of seed of said lines having been deposited underATCC Accession Number PTA-120653, and ATCC Accession Number PTA-121060,respectively.
 30. The method of claim 27, further comprising: (f)crossing the further hybrid SV4844PB, line SBR-99-1326 or lineSBR-E711417-derived pepper plant with a second pepper plant to produceseed of a hybrid progeny plant.
 31. A plant part of the plant of claim7.
 32. The plant part of claim 31, further defined as a leaf, a flower,a fruit, an ovule, pollen, or a cell.
 33. A method of producing a pepperseed comprising crossing the plant of claim 1 with itself or a secondpepper plant and allowing seed to form.
 34. A method of producing apepper fruit comprising: (a) obtaining the plant according to claim 1,wherein the plant has been cultivated to maturity; and (b) collecting apepper from the plant.